Balloons
by DARKSOMEONE41
Summary: Mike Schmidt just got a job with animatronics. He knew it'd be a little different from what he was used to, but when sickening events occur and Mike's past is starting to resurface, who can he turn to? Inspired by MandoPony's song Balloons. Cover made by me
1. I

**So I have finally decided to stop Minecraft fanfics for a short while to write this first chapter of a ****_Five Night at Freddy's_**** story! This is so exciting! I have been thinking about it for a while and I know that the trilogy has ended but the FNAF fandom will live on! This story takes place in the Five Nights at Freddy's 1 game. So, without further ado, please enjoy this chapter of Balloons. Please review. Enjoy!**

**Balloons**

Mike Schmidt walked slowly into the lobby of the Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria restaurant. The receptionist at the desk seemed very focused on something on her computer. Mike couldn't see what. She was facing the lobby and against the wall to the left of the door leading to the party rooms.

The receptionist seemed sweet, really. Her blond hair was straightened and her bangs were swept to the side. Her green eyes held a happiness in them and her smile seemed genuine. When her eyes landed on Mike finally after looking up from her computer, her smile spread wider, if it was even possible.

Mike, a tall and slender man, about six feet, stood dressed in formal attire. A black business suit and dress shoes. He had an interview today. He was applying for the job as night guard in the pizzeria. Mike had short brown hair in a boho wave men style haircut. His hazel eyes made him unique as they had silver flecks among their irises. His tan skin almost made him glow in the almost gloomy lobby. His slender fingers were clenched in anxiousness. He wasn't very good with interviews. Despite his handsome look and figure, Mike tended to be very nervous about the smallest of things. Sometimes he was paranoid, and at rare times, hysterical.

"Hello and welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria," the receptionist greeted with that bright smile of hers. The two figures seemed to brighten up the half dark room, though not in a romantic way. She now sat up straighter, her name tag finally showing that her name was Cass Brown. "Are you by any chance…" Cass trailed off, glancing at her computer screen for a few seconds. "Mr. Michael Schmidt?"

Mike nodded. "Yeah, that is correct. "

Cass nodded. "All right! Great!" She exclaimed enthusiastically. "I'm just going to call up to Aaron and he'll come down to meet you. Until then, feel free to sit in any of the chairs." Walking to one of the chairs Cass was gesturing to against the opposite wall, Mike sat down and crossed his legs, patiently waiting for Aaron King to meet him.

It was silent in the lobby after Cass hung up the phone. All that was heard was Cass's mouse scrolling or the tapping on the keyboard. That is, until Cass said something.

"So, Mr. Schmidt…" Cass started, stopping her typing and leaned forward.

Mike held up his hand in a small 'wait' gesture. "Please, call me Mike."

Cass grinned. "All right, _Mike_, why are you applying here?"

Mike thought for a moment. "Well, I'm used to late nights, this place is rather close to my home, and money is a little tight at home so I need some type of job, _any_ job really. This one was the first I thought of and the quickest to ask for an interview."

Cass sighed. "You're not the only one going through a hard time. Freddy's is losing its touch." She began to smile again. "Maybe you can fix that. You seem like a cheerful man."

Before Mike could reply, a Hispanic man walked in. With short black hair, grey eyes, and light brown skin, the man was muscular. He seemed quite intimidating to Mike. The smile that the man had on his face made his appearance less threatening however.

'_Does everyone smile here? Is there some kind of happiness fever here?'_ Mike thought to himself.

The man walked up to Mike and Mike stood up. The two men shook hands, though the other man had a stronger grip. "Are you Mr. Michael?" The man asked.

Mike nodded. "Are you Mr. Aaron King?"

The man nodded. "Please. Let's get to my office and we'll talk there. Is that alright?" When Mike nodded, Aaron began to lead Mike through the party room which was filled with kids. On the other side of the room, Mike saw three animal robots dancing and singing on stage. To the wall they were passing stood a small stage with purple curtains with stars covering it. A sign that read 'Out of Order' was posted in front of the hidden stage. The animatronics on the stage were a little creepy, but Mike could see how the kids enjoyed them. The bunny seemed to be the more sarcastic animal with her rock guitar and rebel attitude. The chicken, or duck, whatever it was, seemed to the more motherly animal. She had a small cupcake in her hand and she always seemed to scold the bunny whenever she did something wrong. The bear was a different story. He seemed to have a bunch of personalities. He seemed funny, a more comedic animal, but he looked like he could be stern if he needed to be.

As Mike and Aaron walked by and towards a door that led outside, Mike could see the animatronics were staring at him through the corners of their eyes. Even a tense atmosphere radiated from the closed off stage. Mike felt a shiver run up his spine but decided it would be smart to continue walking.

Mike and Aaron pushed through the door and walked outside into the warm summer air. They climbed a staircase that looked like a fire escape. The stairs rose alongside the outer wall of the restaurant. They climbed the metal stairs and pushed through the metal door at the very top. Walking in revealed a large office with bookshelves, file cabinets, and an oak desk with a computer. The room was neatly kept and impressed Mike with the sheer organization of it. The only papers that were lying around were folders that looked like Aaron had been working on before Mike arrived.

Pointing to the chair on the other side of the desk, Aaron politely commanded that Mike would sit down and "stay awhile". So, Mike sat in the rather comfortable chair in front of the desk. Aaron sat in a brown swivel chair behind the desk and started to pull up a Word document on his computer screen. Pushing the side of the computer a little bit for Mike to see, Aaron began to fill Mike in on the job expectations and rules.

"All right. There aren't many rules here at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza and they are very simple," Aaron began, motioning to the computer screen. "I'm supposed to be handing you this contract and everything but I'm just gonna sum it up for you since you're gonna get the job anyway."

At this, Mike chuckled. How simple. He didn't even have to say much of anything of importance.

Aaron chuckled as well. "So what this says is that anything that happens in the restaurant will stay in this restaurant for a few reasons. Reason one: As soon as you sign up for this job, when you say anything confidential, our lawyers will be on you like a pack of wolves on a rabbit. It won't be pretty."

Mike shuddered. This reminded him of...No.

Aaron nodded his head, thinking that Mike was shuddering because of how brutal the lawyers will be. "Reason two: Everyone will think you're crazy. There's been a few people who quit this job and blabbered on about what happened during their shifts."

Mike bit on his thumbnail in anxiousness. "What did the lawyers do?"

Aaron raised his eyebrows. "Well! The lawyers didn't have to do much of anything. They just gave a tiny push and they were put in a mental hospital. It wasn't pretty. Everyone already thought they were crazy. It didn't take much to finally make them sure of their suspicions."

Mike's eyes widened. _'They can do the same thing to me! Why would I want this job?! I am seriously reconsidering this! But then again...I don't have any other choice...I guess I'll have to suffer through it.'_

"Listen, Michael," Aaron started. "This sounds really bad. I know. But there's a guy that will call you every night explaining everything about the job, okay? All you have to do is sit in your office and engage if an intruder comes into the pizzeria. That's all you have to do. Nothing hard. Now, we haven't had a break-in in..." Aaron thought for a moment. "Four years? About that long. There still is a possibility but it's unlikely. Freddy Fazbear's Pizza is the safest place on earth. You'll be perfectly fine here. These animatronics will protect you. Before you leave, I'm gonna take a picture of your face and record your voice. Do I have your permission?"

"May I ask why before you do?" Mike questioned, still nervous and suspicious about the job offer.

Aaron looked shocked. "Of course! One of the rules here is to not be here after dark. If you are here and your face and voice is not in the system, the animatronics will..." Aaron winced. "...engage. We're taking your face and voice and we're going to program it into the animatronics' databases. This way, they'll remember you and give you permission to be here. You become their friend and they will protect you at all costs. So, really, we should be paying them to guard you!" Aaron and Mike laughed a bit at the small joke. "But in all honesty, Michael, just as long as you keep everything confidential, you will live in peace. The pay isn't much. It's just barely minimum wage, I know. But once we get Freddy's back to what it used to be, you'll be paid more. I promise."

Mike nodded. "And you're sure there's nothing else to say?"

Aaron shook his head. "No. Two more things. The animatronics are allowed to walk around at night. When they do, it's probably just to meet you. If you don't want that, if you're not comfortable yet, you can use the security doors and cameras, which I will show when we get to your office in a moment. Last thing, because of our tight budget, we have to have a limited amount of power. This means, if you're going to avoid the animatronics, you're going to have to use your power wisely. If you have the security doors shut all night, the power won't last more than an hour."

Mike gulped and rubbed his palms together nervously. "What happens when the power runs out?"

Even Aaron looked a little uncomfortable at this question. "To be honest, we're not really sure. Some people say that they saw Freddy in the dark playing the Toreador March. They don't go into much detail after that. So I recommend trying to get acquainted with the animatronics first."

Pulling back his computer screen to the original position, Aaron glanced at the time in the bottom right hand corner of the screen. "3:57," he read. "We have enough time to get acquainted with the animatronics and visit your office. After that, recording and photo taking. How does that sound?" asked Aaron with a smile.

Mike shrugged and nodded. "Sounds good to me."

"Great." Aaron got up and so did Mike. "And whenever you want to call out, let me know a few days ahead of time so I can set everything up."

"And if it's an emergency during my shift?"

Aaron shifted uncomfortably before having Mike follow him outside. "If it's an emergency, you'll have to tell one of the animatronics that you're leaving."

Mike gaped at him as they climbed down the stairs. "Really? But what if I'm not 'acquainted' with them?"

"That's why I said you should. If anything, as you leave, drop a note on one of the tables stating when you left, why you left, where you went, and how long you're going to be gone from your shift. I don't think I'm asking for too much here."

Mike nodded. "You really aren't but this is kinda hard to...adjust to."

Aaron tilted his head in agreement. "Yeah. I can see that. But my father started this business and I am dead set on keeping it alive." The pair reached the bottom of the steps, and before pushing back open the door that led them to the party room, Aaron stopped and said, "I really do hope you'll stay, Mike. If you do, we might just become friends."

Mike nodded. "I hope I'll stay too."

Aaron gave him a kind smile and opened the door. The two of the walked in the restaurant and was greeted by the sound of a happy birthday song.

The animatronics were surrounding a kid and singing to the child. The bear held a cake, the bunny had a rock guitar, and the chicken held the bear's microphone to his mouth since the bear already had his hands full.

Mike had been to Freddy's when he was a child but then... that... incident... happened and Mike couldn't go back. He knew which animatronic was which but if he wasn't mistaken...

"Where's Foxy?" Mike inquired as the duo looked on at the birthday party.

Aaron froze. "You remember? You remember Foxy?"

Mike turned to him. "Yeah. Wait. Is that him? In there?" Mike pointed at the 'Out of Order' stage. "Did you lock him up because of that... incident?"

Aaron pursed his lips. "My father had no choice. Foxy's dangerous."

"It's been twenty years, Aaron. The incident happened when I was five. Doesn't he deserve a second chance?" Mike asked.

Aaron was quiet for a moment. "I've wanted to give him another chance but that battle made us broke. Maybe one day when Freddy's is back on its feet."

Now it was Mike's turn to stay quiet. That is, until he spoke again. "Aaron, if I am able to forgive Foxy, I'm sure everyone else can."

Aaron was about to reply when the little girl the animatronics were singing to ran up to them. The little girl looked around the age of five and had small brown pigtails. She was light-skinned just like Aaron. It was obvious that she was his daughter.

"Daddy!" The little girl squealed, hugging Aaron's leg. "Bonnie let me touch her guitar!"

Aaron smiled. "Did she now?" Mike saw him look at Bonnie and he could've sworn he saw Bonnie wink.

The little girl nodded and hummed, "Mm-mhm!"

Aaron looked back down at his daughter and gave her a small hug. Patting her back, he said, "I think she's waiting for you, Maya."

Sure enough, Bonnie was kneeling down with her arms open to Maya.

"Happy birthday, Maya," Aaron said, giving Maya a kiss. Maya beamed before running back to Bonnie.

The two watched as Bonnie embraced the girl before heading down the West Hall to the security office.

The office was a bit messy at the time. There was small fan on the desk and wrappers were everywhere. An empty cup of soda sat on the desk as well and a cupcake with eyes was there too.

Aaron laughed nervously. "Don't worry. I'll clean this all up before you get here tonight."

Mike nodded and walked in to get a better feel of the office. There were two entryways on either side of him. Each side had two buttons: a white one labeled LIGHT and a red one labeled DOOR. The door button was on top of the light button.

Aaron stood in the middle of the west doorway. "Close the door on me," he ordered gently.

Mike stared. "_What?! No!_ Is this a death wish? No way!"

Aaron chuckled. "Close the door, Mike. Just hit that big, red, square button on the wall labeled door."

"I know what button to hit, but I'm not going to hit it! It'll kill you!" Mike argued. It was his first interview and meeting with Aaron and he was starting to think he was ruining his first impression…

"Mike, I'm not thinking any different of you," Aaron soothed. "I still think you're a really nice guy and you're just trying to do the right thing. Now please, hit the button."

Mike bit his lip before finally pushing the red button on the west side. Instead of the door slamming shut, a small beeping sound was made and nothing changed.

"The door won't close because I'm right here. These doors will not close if something is in the way, even an animatronic and especially a human," explained Aaron.

Mike let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "You scared me so bad for a moment there."

Aaron looked apologetic. "Sorry, but I wanted to test your trust. If we're going to work together, we need to trust each other."

Mike nodded. "Makes sense." _'This guy's crazy. He would've died if the motion detectors skipped.'_

Aaron smiled tightly. "Let's head to the lobby and take that picture and recording, hmm?"

Mike nodded and the two men began to walk to the lobby where Cass was waiting for them with her huge smile.

"Hi guys!" She greeted cheerfully. "That took a while!"

The two men smiled. They couldn't help it. Cass was a cheerful young woman and it really rubbed off on people.

"All my interviews take a while, Cass," reminded Aaron gently.

Cass tilted her head in agreement before blushing darkly. "Can one of you help me with something?"

"What is it?" Mike asked politely. He'd like to make good friends with Cass even before he started.

"Um, I...need help reading this," Cass muttered in embarrassment before turning her head away. Mike looked at Aaron in confusion.

"Dyslexia," Aaron mouthed and Mike nodded his head slowly in acknowledgement.

"Course," Mike replied before taking papers from Cass. He slowly began to read the papers as Cass typed the requisition letters into the computer.**(Requisition: an official order laying claim to the use of property or materials.)**

Apparently, Freddy Fazbear Pizza was ordering a new microphone for Freddy, new chairs, a couple new tables, more dough for pizza, several drinks, and a new tablet.

Mike didn't ask any questions after reading the requisition letters. It wasn't even supposed to be his concern anyway. It was supposed to be private but he happened to stumble across it as a favor.

During the time Mike and Cass were working, Aaron had left to his office and returned a couple seconds before Mike finished reading with a camera. Aaron had Mike stand in the middle of the lobby to take his picture. They took a front picture, his two sides, and the back of him. They then recorded Mike stating his name, new job, and his promise to keep all things Freddy Fazbear confidential.

"And that's all we need!" Aaron said cheerfully after he stopped recording. "Nice way to end an interview: a photoshoot!"

Mike chuckled. "I suppose. Never ended an interview like this before. As a matter of fact, this interview was kind of unique."

Aaron grinned. "That's what Freddy Fazbear's is all about, Michael."

Cass looked up. "Hey Aaron?"

Aaron looked over at the receptionist. "Yes, Cass?"

"Aren't you forgetting to give Mike something...?"

Aaron snapped his fingers as he remembered. "Yep. Yep. I am forgetting something. Yep. I'll be right back," he said before rushing out of the lobby and to the party room.

For the amount of time Aaron was gone, Cass and Mike talked about their likes and dislikes, their hobbies, Cass's memories at the restaurant, and a few other professional topics. Cass, even though Mike already knew this, was a really nice woman. She was kind, bright, and smart. She had dyslexia since she was a child and was teased because it was almost impossible for her to read. It still is very hard for Cass to read and write, but she was getting better. She needed Aaron to help her with the requisition letters, however. The numbers of the item ID's are something that she will never be able to read. They weren't words she could try to guess. If she put in the wrong number ID, she'd put in the wrong order.

When Aaron returned, he was carrying a large bag that held a uniform inside of it. It was a stereotypical security guard uniform. It was light blue with a black tie, yellow badge pinned to the left shoulder, and a light blue cap with a black lid.

"Your key card will be given to you in a couple days," Aaron said as he handed the uniform to Mike. "I'll need you to come at 11:45 so I can let you in as I leave and make sure you're comfortable until your key card arrives, okay?"

Mike nodded. "Yeah. I can do that. What time is it?"

Cass looked at the bottom right left corner of the computer screen. "3:40."

"Impossible," Aaron reminded. "I left my office with Mike at 4:00."

"Then 4:30," Cass corrected.

Mike nodded. "Yeah. I'll be there."

"Great. See you later then, Michael," Aaron said, winking.

Mike smiled and left the pizzeria. As he walked home, he replayed the past couple hours in his mind. Finally, it all clicked.

He would be working from twelve in the morning to six in the morning as a night guard for a restaurant with a bad history and a possibility of robbery with three large, six foot animatronics as his only company for a long time. Crap.


	2. II

Balloons ll

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._ Mike reached and attempted to turn off the alarm clock. The alarm did stop. He did turn off the clock…even if it did mean knocking the clock off the bedside table.

Mike groaned before throwing himself off the bed. Grabbing the alarm clock, Mike set it on the table before quickly changing into the uniform Aaron gave him earlier. The blue uniform still rested in the bag Aaron gave it to him in. The bag was lying next to the window, trying to catch any type of cool summer air that might blow in. Mike knew that didn't happen. The summer air was hot and humid, even in the night air, which was supposed to be one of the coolest parts of the day, maybe even the coldest.

After Mike finished getting dressed, he walked to the kitchen to warm up the coffee he pre made before he went to bed. He knew he would need it. If he was going to stay up all night, he might as well have a large mug of black coffee.

Mike was used to late nights, but all-nighters were completely different. It was beyond ridiculous. Okay. Maybe Mike was exaggerating a little bit. He had pulled a few all-nighters when he went out solo drinking in a bar. This job was going to be a little bit more difficult than he originally imagined. Staying up all night with animatronics and fighting criminals was kind of extreme. What was he? Batman? No. He was Michael Schmidt, the man who had extreme social anxiety and no life whatsoever.

Either way, Mike was regretting his decision. He was about to become a nocturnal human. He was _not a bat._ Why was he _doing this?_ Mike groaned as he capped his thermos and walked out the door, locking it behind him.

'_I just wanna go back to sleep,'_ he thought as he stepped into the humid summer air.

::::TIME LAPSE::::

Mike approached the pizzeria. The neon purple letters flickered in the dark night and some of them weren't even on. Mike winced. Wow. They really were short on money.

He waited out there for a little while before Aaron finally opened the door. His face brightened when he saw the recently hired security guard. "Mike! You're right on time!" His smile faltered. "Then again, you've probably been standing here for a long time. Let's get you to the office. The animatronics should be turning on soon." Aaron casually led Mike inside and Mike wasn't too impressed.

The inside wasn't much better. It was completely dark and he had to take out his provided flashlight to see. It wasn't long until another beam of light came into focus. Mike winced away at the bright light but quickly adjusted to it. Aaron had turned on his own flashlight to see in the dark. The duo walked towards the back of the restaurant where the security office resided.

When Mike walked into the office, it was still a little messy. He could tell Aaron made an effort but there were still a few wrappers on the floor and desk and a soda cup on the desk as well. Mike pursed his lips. With his OCD, the place would be clean in seconds, but he didn't want to seem rude. Aaron had tried and that was what mattered. Now if Aaron hadn't tried, Mike would start cleaning as soon as his new boss had left.

Aaron rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry. After closing hours, I still had work to do so Maya attempted to clean it out. I guess she didn't do so well…" Oh. _Maya_ did it. Now, Mike wasn't so annoyed. She was just a kid.

Mike smiled. "That's all right. I'm still able to work."

Aaron grinned. "I suppose so." He glanced at his watch. "Oh! It's 11:58! I have to go!" Aaron turned to leave, but turned back around before fully leaving. "Please. Try to talk the animatronics. They won't hurt you. Well, I better leave. Bye!"

"Bye," Mike smiled. He picked up the small tablet that lay on the messy desk. He hadn't seen it that day, so he supposed Aaron had placed it before he came. He turned it on and a picture of the stage showed. It wasn't until the image started moving that Mike noticed that it was from the stage camera. He began tapping all the buttons one at a time, viewing the restaurant and getting a feel of it all. It wasn't until he clicked on the kitchen camera that he began to become frightened.

'_What happened to that camera? Why isn't it working?'_ thought Mike. Half of him wanted to check it out. The other half of him wanted to stay in the office and not move until six a.m.. His frightened side got the best of him and he stayed in his office. He slowly began to relax and settled into his chair more comfortably. As he flicked through the cameras again, his heart stopped.

'_Where did Bonnie go?!'_ Mike flipped through the cameras until his view settled in the West Hall. The flickering lights outlined a shadowy figure. The figure of a six-foot tall animatronic bunny. Aaron said they were friendly and Mike knew them from when he was a child, but right now, they weren't looking so nice. He flipped off the camera, and as soon as he did, he heard thumping coming down the hall. Mike's heart started racing. Crap. This was going to suck.

Mike took a deep breath. _'Okay, Michael. Deep breaths. Great...About to become friends with an animatronic bunny. Yay.'_

"Hey! Name's Mike, right?"

Mike nearly jumped out of his skin. _Shit._ That scared the crap out of him. He did _not_ expect that.

He turned to the West Hall Door and saw Bonnie the Bunny standing there, giving him a big smile. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya. I'm guessing you're the new night guard?"

Mike nodded, still trying to get his breathing under control. "Y-Yeah."

"So your name's Mike then, right?"

"Um, yeah."

"Huh," Bonnie said, nodding her head. "You look familiar and not just from this morning...But from where though?"

Mike cleared his throat. _'God, this is so weird.'_ "I used to come here a lot when I was a child, but then you got relocated and my parents became..." Mike hesitated, earning a look from Bonnie. He attempted to play it off as though he was looking for the right words. "...too occupied."

Bonnie looked a little suspicious but her face suddenly turned confused. "Wait, wait, wait,wait, wait, wait, wait." She looked into his eyes. "If you stopped coming here as a child, why are you here now?"

Mike was puzzled. "Why not?"

"You haven't heard?" Bonnie asked, raising an eyebrow. At Mike's silence, Bonnie received her answer. She shrugged. "It's nothing important anyway. It's all in the past." She smiled. "It's great to have you back. I can't say for sure that your history as a child is still in my database, but if it is, I'll let you know."

Mike smiled. Despite the fact that he just made friends with an animatronic bunny, Mike was glad for the company. It gave him less time to think. He hated thinking. It brought back too much.

The rest of the night went by fast as the robot and human chatted away. Bonnie informed Mike that he won't meet Chica until tomorrow and Freddy until the night after that.

Bonnie was a cool girl. She talked about her guitar and what it was like to live and work at Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria everyday. The two talked about much of nothing. As they spoke, inside jokes were created and Mike began to laugh, something he didn't do much. They were so involved in their conversation that when the clock rang loudly, it scared the duo out of their wits.

"Oh God. I gotta get back to the stage!" Bonnie said, rushing out the door. "It was nice talking to you, Mike!"

"See you tomorrow, Bonnie!" He called back. Mike leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. He lay there for about five minutes when a soft knock made him open one eye. Aaron stood at the East Hall doorway, smiling at the young man.

"Morning, Mike," the older man greeted. He held out a medium sized Dunkin Donuts Coolatta cup. "I saw you bring in coffee last night so I decided to grab you a Coolatta in thanks for staying the night."

Mike raised his hand and gently took the cold beverage. "Thanks, Aaron." He took a small sip and looked up. "Orange?" Aaron nodded and smiled when Mike claimed that it was his favorite.

"No prob," Aaron replied.

"How much do I owe you?" Mike asked, fishing for his wallet.

Aaron quickly cut off his sip of iced coffee and swallowed. "Nothing! Nothing at all! It was on me!"

Mike looked at his boss uncertainly. "Are you sure? I can pay for it. I don't wanna feel like this is me asking for too much."

Aaron shook his head. "No. It's not. It's fine. If I recall correctly, I got the Coolatta without you asking."

Mike sighed and got up from his seat. "Okay." As he walked away via the East Hall Door, Aaron grabbed Mike's arm gently.

"How was it?"

Mike smirked. "You got an adorable bunny on your hands. I suggest you keep her, Aaron." With that said, Mike walked down the East Hall, leaving a smiling Aaron in his wake.

**Sorry it took so long! I was going to make the next few chapters one whole chapter but decided not to last minute. The next chapters will be coming very shortly. So hold on a few moments okay? Until then...DARKSOMEONE41 SIGNING OUT! SEE YA!**


	3. III

Mike hated silence. He despised it. He hated loud noises. He despised that too. He liked chatter. He loved it. It made him feel like there was someone who cared. When he was with Bonnie last night, he enjoyed her company. When he was waiting for Aaron yesterday morning, he enjoyed Cass's company. When he was talking to Aaron earlier, he enjoyed his boss's company.

But he hated feeling reliant on everyone. He wanted nothing more than to be independent. It never happened though. For the twenty three years Mike had been alive, he always relied on someone. Whether it was his mother, his teachers, classmates, he relied on someone, but they never knew it. It was a silent thing. He secretly wanted them to help him. They never got the message.

So sitting here in his apartment, sky slowly brightening, small town slowly waking up, Mike hated the silence. How he yearned for cars to be honking and pedestrians shouting. That never happened in Bluewater Village, Colorado. It was one of the few "old-fashioned" towns left in the United States. Very few cars were used. People mostly walked or biked. They had stores like a modern city, but air and light pollution wasn't as bad.

Living in a town like Bluewater Village meant quiet. Mike always regretted moving there, but the apartment he was currently living in was one of the cheapest in the state. Of course, the apartment wasn't pretty at all. A three-hundred fifty dollar apartment was bound to be ugly and dirty.

Even though Mike had a fully functioning bathroom, kitchen, and electricity, the landlord was a bitch and the walls were tearing apart. The apartment was always cold and the other residents were always loud or high. Mike hated it.

He waited for the town to start becoming a comforting volume before dressing in a tee shirt and shorts and drifting off to sleep.

* * *

_Mike was surrounded by darkness. The black seemed to move in on him, suffocate him, kill him. He reached for his neck, the place where the pressure seemed to be pushing the most, but when he felt around, his neck was fine. He was clothed, but felt exposed, cold, and bare. Mike moved to walk, but his legs felt frozen. _

_**'What is going on here?'**_ _He thought. He wanted to look around, but his neck was stuck too. Mike started to panic. It was too quiet. He didn't like quiet. He hated quiet. Where was the noise? _

_Mike started to hyperventilate, but found that he couldn't breathe anymore. Mike tried to move his arms once more, but found that they froze too._

_Suddenly, the darkness went away, only for a room to appear. Mike stared at the room. It was nothing like a regular room. The walls were grey and the metal bed had a thin mattress, which wouldn't be comfortable with a metal bed frame. There were blood spots on the floor and bed and handcuffs on the frame. There were a few toys strewn about the room so Mike could only assume a child was sleeping in that room._

_Mike stared on in horror. __**'Oh God no.' **__Mike heard a child scream before he was ripped out of the nightmare._

* * *

Mike bolted upright in his bed, panting and in a cold sweat. That nightmare...he never had that before. Why did he have it now?

Mike checked the clock that he had knocked off his desk yesterday. It read: 11:32 PM

Mike shot out of his bed. He raced to the bathroom to get dressed and brushed his teeth. He was out of the door in less than ten minutes.

Mike quickly walked down the dark street. Street lights were rare and placed sporadically across the town, resulting in the pedestrians enveloped in the darkness.

Mike arrived at the restaurant, just barely on time. Aaron immediately opened the door and walked Mike to the office. Mike saw a smile on Aaron's face and asked what he was happy about.

"That you came back. Now you get to spend more time with the animatronics."

"I'd said I'd come back," Mike answered, confused.

Aaron smiled bigger. "And I'm glad you could keep your promise."

At that moment, Mike then realized how much Aaron had been let down. The man had serious trust issues due to many people lying to him, saying they'd come back but never do. That left Aaron to spend many sleepless nights trying to keep what was his father's biggest treasure alive until he found a new person to do the job.

"Aaron," Mike started as they arrived at the office. "I won't let you down."

Aaron moved his smile into a grin. "I hope not." He snapped his fingers unexpectedly, making Mike jump. "I forgot!" Aaron reached into his pocket and pulled out a badge. He handed it to Mike. "It's your keycard. Now you don't need me to open the door for you. Just swipe and walk right in."

"Thanks, Aaron." Mike smiled. No one had done that before. Then again, he never had friends.

"No problem!" Aaron answered. "I gotta go. Bye Mike!"

As Aaron turned to leave, Mike suddenly remembered something. "Wait, Aaron!" Aaron turned back around. "Didn't you say something about a person calling me to explain the job?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"They never called last night."

Aaron's mouth frowned. "They didn't? Huh. I guess I'll set the pre-recorded messages to play for you tomorrow night."

Mike nodded. "Okay. I guess I'll see you then, Aaron."

"Bye, Michael!" Aaron waved.

"Bye!" Mike called as the larger man left. As he waited for Bonnie to stop by, Mike began thinking. He hated thinking.

A second later, his stomach growled softly, reminding Mike that the last time he ate was eleven hours ago.

_'Now you remind me? Well, now we gotta wait six hours.'_ His stomach growled quietly as though it was a quick retort. _'Suck it up. This is your fault.'_

Mike was yanked out of his thoughts by knocking on the door, causing Mike to jump harshly in his seat. He turned around to see Bonnie staring worriedly at him.

"Hey Bonnie," Mike breathed.

"You okay?" The bunny asked cautiously. "I didn't mean to scare you...Again."

Mike chuckled. "It's fine."

The animatronic bunny's gaze lingered a little while longer before saying, "Well, you have a guest tonight, remember? "

Mike nodded. "Uh yeah. Um, Chica, right?"

Bonnie smiled and nodded encouragingly to the dark hall to Mike's right. "Without further ado, I give you...Chica the Chicken!"

Mike turned to his right to see the large animatronic chicken enter the office. It was a tight fit, but the three managed to squeeze in. Chica was leaning against the right wall, Bonnie was leaning against the table, and Mike had pushed his chair back towards the left to make room and keep eye contact with the two females.

"So say 'hi', you two," Bonnie reminded awkwardly after a couple minutes of uncomfortable silence.

Chica spoke next. "Um, hi. You're Michael Schmidt, right?"

Mike nodded. "Yeah."

Chica smiled. "It's great to meet you. I don't get to really see a lot of people at night. Bonnie tends to scare them off before it's my turn to come out."

Bonnie snorted, her arms crossed and she was glaring at the West Hall. "Hmph. It's not my fault they're a bunch of prissies."

Mike let out a small laugh. "Geez. Hope I'm not considered a 'prissy'."

Bonnie attempted to glare at him but failed. She started to laugh too. "You're still here, aren't you?"

Mike shook his head as he chuckled. "Yep. I guess I am."

Chica looked at him. "Do you want to stay here? Or do you not have a choice and it's mandatory?" The question was put out there and the atmosphere turned a bit tense.

Mike smiled after a few seconds. "Am I supposed to be completely honest?"

Chica and Bonnie faltered. "We would like you to," Chica responded quietly.

"Well," Mike started. "At first, I was hesitant. I, uh, have some issues so to be put in a job as a night guard could certainly make things a little frightening. Research says that being scared won't improve my health, but I never listen. And I'm glad I didn't. I would've never met Bonnie, who gave me company last night that I enjoyed. Now I'm meeting you, Chica, and I could say the same thing."

Bonnie and Chica went silent with shock and slight pity. The girls immediately regretted the question as soon as he said 'issues'.

"W-Wow," Bonnie stuttered. 'I-I'm sorry we asked."

Mike grinned, eyes flickering downwards before back at the bunny's face. "It's fine, Bonnie. You had a right to ask."

"Did we?" Chica muttered quietly.

"Yeah. You did. After a bunch of people running out on you because of your appearance kinda damages your trust and self-confidence, huh?" Mike questioned.

Bonnie nodded. "Yeah. It does." She thought for a moment. "If you come back tomorrow and meet Freddy, you two would get along really well."

Mike looked at her. "Can you tell me a little bit about Freddy like you did with Chica yesterday?"

Bonnie winked, that teasing yet caring smirk on her face. "Why yes. Yes I can. Do I want to? Yes. Yes I do."

Chica rolled her eyes. "Come on, Bonnie. Stop teasing the poor guy." Mike smiled in appreciation.

Bonnie pouted. "You're no fun, chicken." She corrected herself immediately when Chica shot her a glare. "Freddy is...secretive. He's a really relaxed guy. He makes all the jokes, yeah, but even during the show, Freddy is mostly calm and he's really good with the kids. He respects your privacy but will intervene if he knows something is really wrong. He's like a father to us. Freddy's protective but he will give you a chance to prove that you mean well."

Mike was quiet for a few minutes, letting it all sink in. _'Father bear, protective, secretive, relaxed, calm, and loyal. If I manage to piss him off, he'll have the biggest explosion of all the animatronics. Shit.'_

Mike opened his mouth to speak once more. "How do I prove myself to him?"

Bonnie and Chica looked at each other with big smiles. Chica winked. "You already have. Bonnie's been spoke highly of you last night and I certainly have great things to say. Freddy just wants to hear your story, the one you just told us. I'm sure he'll be convinced."

Mike hesitated. These reassurances sucked. "To be honest, I'm more afraid of meeting Freddy than I was Chica."

As Chica looked on in confusion, Bonnie smiled. "Relax. Freddy knows when and when not to push. He knows when sensitive topics are being uncovered. He won't push you."

Mike was still hesitant but decided to trust the two females. "Okay."

The rest of the night flew by. The trio just chatted the night away, playing a small "Let's Get to Know Each Other" type of game. They learned each other's habits and interests. Bonnie and Mike began using their inside jokes they had created the previous night just to confuse, then annoy, then aggravate Chica. Eventually, the avian had had enough and snapped at Bonnie and Mike. Bonnie and Mike laughed, though Mike's smile was a little weak.

Bonnie caught the quiver Mike's smile let escape. She tried to cover it up. "Hey Chica? Don't you have a surprise for Mikey?"

Chica's face lit up. "Oh yeah! I'll be right back!" With that, the bird ran out of the small office and into the dark hallway.

When Chica was gone, Bonnie turned to Mike, who had a raised eyebrow. "What?"

"Mikey?"

"No one's called you that before?"

"Only you guys when I was little."

Bonnie snapped her fingers. "Oh! I forgot to tell you! I checked my database for memories of you." She sighed sadly. "There were none. It was probably lost with the several updates and repairs. Sorry, Mike."

Mike waved it off, but Bonnie could've sworn she saw sadness flicker in his eyes. "It's alright."

Bonnie hesitated. "Are you okay?" Mike turned to her so quickly, it was a possibility he could've gotten whiplash. "I know you just met me again and all, but you seem a little sadder than yesterday."

Mike nodded, waving off the concern. "I'm fine, Bonnie." At that moment, Mike suddenly got a surprise headache. Shutting his eyes tightly, he reached up immediately and ran his fingers halfway through his hair, palm resting on his forehead.

Surprised by the quick motion, Bonnie took a step forward. "Are you okay? What happened?"

The night guard opened one eye and forced himself to give a smile, weak or not. "It's nothing. I just forgot to eat anything today so this is kind of a hunger headache is all. It happens a lot."

Before Bonnie could even register, much less question, Mike's statement, Chica walked into the office with a small gift box in her hands. Mike immediately righted himself in order to avoid Chica seeing him in pain.

Chica blushed as much as a robot could. "It's just something Bonnie and I made for you if you came back for tonight. You did so now we're giving this to you." She pushed the gift towards him.

Mike blushed as he awkwardly held the gift in his hands. He held it for a moment before the bunny spoke.

"Well? Are ya going to open it?"

Mike blushed deeper. "It's just that...I, uh, never got a gift before..."

Chica gasped and Bonnie's eyes widened. "What do you mean you've never gotten a gift before?!" Bonnie growled. "What about your birthday? Christmas? Any holiday?"

Mike shifted awkwardly. "Never celebrated my birthday. Though my parents were Christians, we never went to church, much less celebrate holidays. I guess they just chose a religion in case they were asked."

"Oh, you poor thing!" Chica cried. "Well, that makes this gift super important! Here. Let me help you unwrap it. Don't want you to get a paper cut."

As Chica's feathery hands were positioned over his own, Mike expected Bonnie to make a joke over him and Chica. But when he shot a quick glance at the rabbit from the corner of his eye, all he saw was concern and suspicion. All Mike could do was wonder what was going through the animatronic's head.

When the wrapping paper was finally ripped off, all there was left was a brown box, waiting for its lid to be lifted off. Mike slowly pulled off the lid and reached in through the colorful tissue. His hand grasped a cold and rather large object for the tiny box. As Mike pulled it out, he could feel the unexpectedly heavy weight pull his arm down slightly.

Bonnie grinned. "Too heavy for ya, Mikey?"

Mike shot her a glare that meant nothing but affection. Mike shook his head and smiled as he pulled out the object. Once the present was finally out in the open, Mike inspected it closely. It was almost exactly like Chica's cupcake except for where there was pink, there was blue. The eyes were absent as well, so it was almost exactly like an ordinary cupcake.

"We left out the face since we figured it would be a little creepy," Chica began to inform. "It's also a vanilla scented candle. That's not all though. Bonnie had the idea to put a little fire resistant compartment on the bottom, so when the candle is finished, you could open that up and pull out what's inside."

Mike looked at the yellow chicken. "What's inside?"

Chica shook her finger. "Uh, uh, uh. That's for us to know and for you to find out."

Mike just chuckled. "Well, um, thank you, girls. I really appreciate it."

Chica scoffed. "And I really appreciate you calling us girls instead of guys. I swear, why is it that the masculine nouns always dominate the feminine nouns?"

Mike didn't know how to reply to that without it sounding at all offensive. Luckily, Bonnie came to his rescue. "That's just the English language, Chica. All languages really."

Chica pouted, looking as if she wanted to argue, but decided against it. She went to speak again when the loud chiming sounded, followed by children laughter.

"Oh! I guess it's six o'clock!" Chica sighed. She smiled at Mike. "It was a great pleasure meeting you! I hope to see you tomorrow night, Mikey!"

Mike nodded. "Yeah. Of course. I'll be back."

Bonnie clapped a hand on his shoulder softly. Mike winced at the sudden gesture. If Bonnie noticed, she didn't show it. "See you tomorrow, Mike."

"Goodbye, you two." The two girls left the office via the west exit and continued down the dark hall.

Mike rolled the swivel chair towards the cluttered desk. He placed his gift back into its box carefully and threw out the colorful wrapping paper. He leaned back in the chair as he waited for the employees to arrive. His stomach growled again, but this time, viciously. Mike placed a hand on his stomach.

_'Later.'_

Bonnie and Chica went silent as they watched Mike through the window. The hall was still unlit, so if Mike looked over, he wouldn't have seen then. The office, however, was lit so the two females saw everything.

The duo then turned and walked stealthily down the hall. When they reached the bottom of the stage, Chica asked, "What was wrong with him?"

Bonnie pursed her lips and leaned against the stage ledge. "I think he's sick."

Chica's eyes widened. "_What?!_ Then why would he come back tonight?!"

Bonnie looked at her. "Well, we all kinda pressured him into coming in our own subtle ways. He probably felt obligated to come despite his headache."

"Headache?"

"Yeah. When you left to go get the candle, he had a headache. He claimed it was from the lack of food."

Chica's hands flew to her mouth. "The poor thing should've said something! I could've made him a pizza!"

Bonnie shrugged. "Is it just me or does Mike come across as the more...secluded type?"

Chica nodded grimly. "He does. Like he's hiding something that's really tearing him apart. I have a lot of great things to Freddy, but I think we should tell him that Mike is probably sensitive to certain topics."

Bonnie stared at the chicken. "And say what? Freddy's gonna ask what topics and what do we say? 'We're not sure yet. We're working on it'? That's not gonna cut it for ol' Fazbear."

Chica sighed and leaned against the stage next to Bonnie. "We have no choice. We have to warn Freddy."

Bonnie let out a deep breath. "Alright. Let's go tell him."

The two girls shuffled off towards the backstage area, ready to tell Freddy what they had just discovered about the new night guard.


	4. IV

**Okay guys. So I made a huge mistake updating this chapter. When I did, I accidentally left out a chunk of the ending. So I am reposting this chapter. Sorry! Everything is the same up until the last few paragraphs. Again, so sorry!**

Mike woke up from his sleep with a start. He panted heavily as wild eyes searched his room. This needed to stop. It needed to stop _now._ He had a night job now. He needed as much sleep as possible.

Mike growled in annoyance as he looked as his alarm clock. _10:56_, it read. He had about fifty minutes to kill before he needed to leave for work.

Mike sighed and swung his legs over his bed, grabbing his uniform from the worn out desk. Even though Mike lived alone, he still had a strange habit of changing in a locked bathroom. His body shook in fear. '_Oh God, oh God, oh God.'_ He thought as he began to hyperventilate. He looked at his suddenly beeping alarm clock, not able to hear much of the sound in his crowded mind. He pressed the button and shakily climbed out of bed.

As he dressed, Mike looked at the untouched candle on his dirty and broken dresser. The blue cupcake brought a tiny smile to his face as he remembered the kind female robots who gave him his first gift. He was pretty sure he could've unwrapped the present himself without Chica's help, but he appreciated the thought anyway. He had yet to start the candle but expected to soon.

After dressing, Mike sat on the edge of his bed for about five minutes before realizing that time was passing by too slow. Pulling out his phone, Mike clicked on the one contact he had: Aaron. He clicked the green phone icon and raised the cell to his ear. The phone rang a few times before the call was answered.

_"Hey, Mike,"_ Aaron's voice sounded. _"What's up?"_

"Hey, Aaron. Do you think I can come in early?"

There was silence. _"Mike, you have a little less than an hour before you come in. You sure you don't want to relax?"_

Mike nodded even though Aaron couldn't see it. "Yeah. I'm sure."

_"Alright. Do you want me to put you to work as soon as you get here? Give you something to do?"_

"That would be great."

_"Okay. Meet me in the office when you get here. We'll work there and we'll discuss overtime."_

"That won't be necessary. You don't have to pay me OT."

_"I want to. You're doing me a big favor, Mike. Thanks."_

"No. Thank you, Aaron. I'll see you later."

_"Bye."_

As soon as the call ended, Mike was rushing out the door, hurrying over to his night job. Mike was grateful that Aaron was actually allowing him to arrive early. Not only that, but he _wanted_ to pay Mile overtime! That offer was completely insane considering the fact that Freddy's was already broke and could barely afford Mike as it was. Mike was working minimum wage!

Upon arriving at the restaurant, Mike received a text from Aaron, telling him to use his new key card as a way to get in and to bring up the tablet to Aaron's office. Mike quickly followed the simple directions, swiping his key card and using his flashlight to navigate his way through the dark halls.

As he moved through the restaurant, he felt as though the posters and the kid drawings had eyes that followed him everywhere he went. When he turned around after having a suspicion of something stalking him, he found that he was the only person in the hall.

Mike quickly grabbed the tablet and practically raced down the west hall, ready to leave the place as soon as possible. But as he passed Pirate's Cove, he swore he saw the curtains move.

_'Must've been the wind,'_ Mike thought. But as he stood there, Mike began to realize that there was no type of breeze in the building. Giving a terrified look at the closed exhibit, Mike resumed his fast pace and exited the building.

As soon as the doors swung shut, a tired and robotic voice spoke.

"Oh Mikey, lad...what has happened to ye?"

::::TIME LAPSE::::

Mike climbed up the metal stairs in the sheer darkness, barely able to see the step in front of him. The night sky was pure black, but the moon shone semi-brightly and the stars twinkled like little diamonds.

The night guard reached the top of the stairs and lightly knocked on the heavy metal door. The door almost instantly swung open, revealing a happy yet tired Aaron King. The larger male gestured Mike into the room with his free arm. Mike thanked him as Aaron held the door open for him, closing it once the young male had stepped into the familiar office.

The once neatly kept office was a slight mess now. Folders and papers were scattered on Aaron's desk and small circular table pushed up against the opposite wall.

Aaron pointed to the seat Mike had sat in the first time he had arrived a couple days ago. The young male tentatively sat down and watched as the older man sat parallel to him. Aaron moved a folder in front of him away before looking at Mike.

"What's wrong, Michael? You're the first guard to ever stay past one night, not to mention the sudden desire for overtime." Aaron paused, looking the night guard in the eyes. "Is there something bothering you? Is it something that you think I can handle?"

Mike stared at his boss in shock. The man had read him like he was a book splayed open for the entire world to see. Of course, Mike had made it slightly obvious that he did not want to be alone during the phone call, but the man had been able to move so quickly into Mike's thoughts without the young male noticing, squeezing an offer to help with it.

"Um, it's fine, Aaron. I just woke up a lot earlier than I was supposed to and time seemed to be passing way too slow for my liking. Then I remembered that you're the owner and manager so you must've been swamped with work. I decided to ask if you needed help so here I am."

Aaron remained quiet. "That's a nice cover story, Mike. You have half the truth in that. Good job. A little more practice and you would've sold me with that story."

_'What?!' _ Mike thought. _'H-How? How did he just know this?! I've been lying for years! I'm perfect at it! So how did he climb over my walls in just three days?! I've known people who have tried for years and still haven't nailed a crack in my walls!'_

Mike stared. "Aaron...How did you-?"

"Catch your lie?" Aaron finished, raising an eyebrow. "Because I've been watching you since the day we met, Mike. You're a tricky one, I'll give you that. You almost sold me. But I've noticed that something has happened to you. You've been dropping such subtle hints in your words, practically crying out for help. And I've finally caught the difference in your movements between your truths and lies."

Mike's mouth dropped slightly before a smile took its place. He chuckled softly. "You're right, Aaron. I've been watching you too." It was another lie, but this time, a test.

At Aaron's curious gaze, he continued, "I want to know if I can trust you. So, in order to do that, I had to create a fictional story, right? You know, to see how far deep into someone you can see. And by the looks of it, you're pretty good, Aaron. I'm happy."

Aaron gave him a knowing smile, and Mike knew from years of experience that he sold him. "You're good, Schmidt. You're real good. I knew there was a reason I liked you."

Mike smiled as Aaron handed him a large, black binder. A sticker on the side read "Requisitions" in green permanent marker. At Mike's confused expression, Aaron smiled.

"Don't tell Cass." He said. "Sometimes she gets orders wrong so I do little backups just in case."

Mike sighed. "Poor Cass. I feel bad for her."

Aaron nodded. "Cass is like a daughter to me. She always feels horrible for never turning work in on time or messing up an order. I always tell her it's not her fault, but the occasional sad day comes around and Cass doesn't smile."

Mike only met Cass once, but picturing the woman without a smile didn't seem possible. "So that's what you specialize in, Aaron? Reading the confused?"

Aaron grinned. "Never thought about it that way. I guess so. I wouldn't mind if that was the case. Now let's get these done before your shift starts."

The duo spent the next half hour working on requisitions and talking. When Aaron's phone beeped, signalling it was 11:55, the two men cleaned up their mess and headed downstairs. They went their separate ways, saying goodnight to each other as they did so.

Mike slowly walked through the dark halls of the pizzeria. He sighed. Tonight was the night he met Freddy.

Sitting in the office chair, Mike couldn't keep his mind off how nervous he was. He was going to meet the father, the boss, the older brother, whatever they called Freddy.

The young man was ripped out of his thoughts by a knock on the west window. Mike turned to see Bonnie standing there, a concerned look on her face.

"Hey Mikey," she said.

Mike stared at her confusedly. "Uh, hey Bonnie." He looked her up and down. "What's wrong?"

"I should be asking you that." Bonnie sighed at Mike's raised eyebrow. "You've been acting weird. Last night, you told me you get hunger pains a lot. Why? Is there something wrong?"

Mike gaped at Bonnie. He couldn't believe this was actually happening. Aaron and the animatronics were reading him as though he was an open book! Mike knew he was a little more open with them than he normally was with others, but he said basically nothing about himself!

The night guard heard Bonnie shuffle her feet awkwardly. "I mean, I don't know much about adults, but I do know that Aaron's worried about you. He was talking to Freddy earlier. He knew you were going to meet him tonight so he switched me and Freddy on. Me because I know you more and to prepare Freddy."

Mike shielded his eyes to avoid Bonnie seeing anything in them. "What did he say?"

"He said that he thinks something happened to you. He said that you're way too thin for your height, that it's almost unhealthy. Aaron's really worried, Mikey."

Before Mike could respond, footsteps were heard in the East Hall. The only and only Chica the chicken appeared in the doorway.

A nervous look was plastered on her face. "Freddy's waiting for you in the storage room, Mike." Chica and Bonnie looked at each other, cautious. Mike felt fear creep into him at the lack of reassurance. It was nothing like last night.

"Let's take you over there then," Bonnie sighed, waving for Mike to follow her. The young man slowly rose from his chair and followed behind the big, purple bunny.

As they walked through the restaurant, Mike could've swore he saw Bonnie cast a quick glance at Pirate's Cove. Mike took a look as well, only to see nothing but closed curtains. Though he was confused, Mike didn't say a word and kept walking.

Bonnie knocked on the large, metal door that had the sign "Employees Only" on the top.

A deep voice sounded. "Come in."

Bonnie looked at Mike and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "We'll be in the dining hall if you need us. Good luck, Mikey."

Mike nodded and cautiously pushed open the door. A small light hovered above a table in the middle of the grey room. Spare parts littered the shelves and back wall. The animatronic bear sat at one of the two chairs at the table, patiently waiting for the night guard to walk in.

Mike obliged and shut the door behind him. He moved over to the empty chair and tentatively sat down. He shifted in his chair, embarrassed by the horrible first impression he was giving Freddy. Mike couldn't bear to look the animatronic in the eyes. After knowing what Aaron said, Mike didn't know how highly or lowly Freddy thought of him.

Knowing that Mike was too uncomfortable to say the first word, Freddy gently said, "Michael, there's no need to be uncomfortable or shy. From what Bonnie, Chica, and Aaron have said, you are an incredible person. They are quite fond of you."

Mike gave the bear a side glance, still feeling unworthy of looking the animatronic in the eyes. "Oh?" He murmured.

Freddy eyed the night guard suspiciously. He had never met a night guard before, but he has met adults. This man was certainly a strange one. Freddy had an idea. He knew the answer, but it was the only way to get Mike to look at him.

"Is it a part of your culture?"

Mike froze. "What?"

"Avoiding eye contact. Is it a part of your culture?"

"N-No."

"So why aren't you looking me in the eye?" Freddy asked patiently, politely waiting for his answer.

Mike felt weird. He felt like he was being pried into, but at the same time, he was opening up on his own. "I-I just don't feel like I deserve to be treated so respectfully."

"And why's that?"

Mike immediately pushed up his walls again. Freddy mentally cursed himself. "I'm in your home. I'm interacting with your daughters. I feel as though I'm intruding."

It was half a lie. Freddy knew that. He didn't push Mike any further on the subject. Instead, he said thoughtfully, "So they told you."

Mike looked at Freddy's jaw, not able to look any higher. "Told me what?"

"About our family. About how I feel as though they are my daughters and they look to me as their father."

Mike nodded. "Yeah. I find it nice though. You're able to work so closely together."

Freddy began to push a little further. "Do you have a family, Michael?"

Mike's heart stopped. _Michael._ He hated that name. God, he hated that name. He was just barely able suppress his hatred of the name when Aaron said it and now Freddy was saying it.

"Yeah. I do."

"How long has it been since you've seen them?"

Mike thought. "I'm not sure. It probably hasn't been too long. A month maybe?" That was a full blown lie and a half. Mike was so full of shit.

Freddy moved his head down, making eye contact with Mike for the first time. Mike found himself staring into those icy blue eyes. Freddy smiled.

"I think I finally got a glimpse of your eyes, Michael." Rage soared through Mike again. Freddy's eyes narrowed. "You don't like that name do you?"

Mike's eyes widened. "Uh, no. How did you-?"

Freddy grinned. "I looked into your eyes. They're gorgeous. Care to look into mine now?"

::::TIME LAPSE::::

After a couple more hours with Freddy, Mike was finally able to relax. He began to casually talk to the bear, slowly growing used to looking Freddy in the eyes.

Freddy, however, seemed to grow tenser and tenser. He gradually became more and more worried about the man in front of him. It seemed as though Mike had some sort of dark secret, one he wasn't keen on sharing.

Freddy mentally sighed. Mike was going to be a tough one to crack...if he could crack him.

Mike, after looking into Freddy's eyes for the first time, began to be able to read the bear's emotions. He knew Freddy was beginning to become worried. Mike had to do mental exercises to keep himself from panicking. His stomach was becoming painful. He had yet to eat a meal in the past two days, mostly because of exhaustion.

His hand ghosted over his abdomen. He knew Freddy noticed it. The bear frowned.

"Are you hungry? I am sure Chica can make you something to eat."

Mike shook his head. "No. I'm fine. Thanks for asking though."

Freddy nodded. He was hesitant though. Mike was a special type of person. Freddy had never seen someone quite like the new night guard. This was going to be interesting.

Mike looked on at the bear with a calm expression. The inside was a complete mess, however. He was in pain, he was afraid, he was panicking, and most of all, he was tired. He wasn't tired as in he needed sleep - even though that was a part of it - he was tired as in he was done. He was so done. It was getting to complicated. He was tired of being afraid. He was so tired. He wanted it to end. He wanted to have energy bursting through him. Mike sighed in his head. He could wish all he wanted.

It was never going to happen.


	5. V

Balloons V

Mike and Freddy quieted after a few hours of talking. Freddy's worry was steadily becoming greater. Mike's pain was steadily becoming worse. It seemed that both men were struggling, but neither of them were willing to voice it out loud.

Freddy seemed as though he going to speak, but a knock interrupted his actions. Freddy called in the visitor and Bonnie entered the room, a serious look on her face.

She mustered up the strength to smile at Mike, even though they both knew something was wrong. "Hey. Sorry for interrupting, but can I steal Freddy for a moment, Mike?"

Freddy and Mike looked at each other in silent agreement. Freddy smiled apologetically as Mike rose, winking at the old bear.

"Course you can," Mike replied. "I'll head to the office."

Bonnie's expression turned panicked, effectively startling the two males. "No! Don't go to the office!" Mike and Freddy glanced at each other.

Mike took a slight step forward. "Bonnie, are you okay?" He asked nervously, partly freaked out by Bonnie's actions.

_'What's wrong with her? She's acting really scared right now. Did something happen?'_ Mike thought to himself.

Bonnie calmed herself down for Mike's sake. "It's nothing Freddy and I can't handle. It'll be better tomorrow. Chica is waiting for you in the kitchen."

"Uh, right...I'll see you tomorrow night then," Mike answered slowly. He waved goodnight to the animatronics as he left. He was responded with goodbyes he barely heard as the door shut behind him.

Mike walked across the dining room and towards the kitchen. He should've been curious to check what spooked Bonnie so much, but his fear went from zero to one hundred in the span of a few minutes.

Mike pushed open the door to the dark kitchen, greeted with the sight of Chica sliding another pizza pie into the oven. She closed the over door and looked over at Mike, smiling.

"Oh hey!" She greeted.

"Uh, hey. Bonnie said you were expecting me. Is something wrong?" Mike questioned, worried that something happened and the two animatronics would get hurt.

Chica waved her hand in the air. "Nothing Freddy and Bonnie can't handle. Something went wrong in the basement. Aaron hasn't taught you the basement yet, so they're going to go fix the issue. I just wanted to keep you company for the rest of the night."

Mike, albeit slightly suspicious, nodded. "Alright. Do you need help with anything though? You seem a little...overwhelmed."

Chica laughed in embarrassment, glancing at the messy kitchen. Pots and pans were knocked over from the chicken's clumsiness. Pieces of pizza dough and flour were on the floor, almost covering all the black and white tiles.

"Well, six o'clock is a little less than an hour away and this mess isn't going to clean itself..." Chica trailed off. "Do you mind...?"

"No!" Mike responded, smiling. "No, I don't mind at all."

The duo then set to work. Mike began to place the pots and pans into the sink while Chica searched the cabinets for towels and dish detergent. After ten to fifteen minutes, Chica took the baked pizza out of the oven and placed into a box, placing it in the fridge with the others claiming the chefs would warm it in the morning.

It took almost forty five minutes, but the two friends managed to clean the kitchen before the alarm sounded.

Mike sighed, wiping his forearm across his forehead, his hand wet from washing the dishes. "Right on time. I have two minutes left before I gotta go."

Chica sat herself on the sparkling counter. "Thank you so much, Mike. I wouldn't have been able to clean this kitchen on time without you." Chica giggled. "The chefs wouldn't be too happy walking into a messy work space."

Mike chuckled, ripping off two paper towels from the roll. "I wouldn't either," he replied, drying his hands before dumping the towels into the garbage can.

"Your office is kinda messy, no offense."

"None taken. I wasn't the one who cleaned it. Maya did."

Chica smiled. "Sweet, sweet Maya. Her birthday was actually the day you arrived. She's so small yet she holds so much energy. It's insane how hyper she can be."

Mike was about to respond when the alarm went off across the restaurant. "Well, that's my cue. Better head to the office to wait for Aaron."

"Actually," Chica started. "Aaron won't be coming in until later so he wanted us to tell you to go on ahead. I'll tell Bonnie and Freddy you said bye."

Mike furrowed his eyebrows, slightly confused, but let it slide. "Okay...I guess I'll see you later."

"Yep." Chica hopped off the counter and gave Mike a hug, causing the man to freeze. Chica let go. "Are you okay?"

Mike cleared his throat and stood awkwardly. "I, uh, haven't been hugged in almost twenty years."

Chica was boiling with anger and sympathy. She really wondered what Mike's childhood was like because the way things had been sounding, she felt as though his home life wasn't very friendly whatsoever.

"I'm going to get going. I'll see you later, Chica." Mike began to leave the dark kitchen.

"Bye, Mikey," Chica called softly as the male left the room.

Chica waited until she knew he was gone before reaching behind the fridge. She grabbed the hidden alarm clock and looked at the time. _**5:45 a.m.**_ it read. She sighed and set the chime to six. She hated tricking Mikey like that. Thank God he didn't ask why he heard the alarm from the kitchen.

She raced out of the kitchen and to the West Hall. Reaching the West Hall Corner, she stopped and stared at the two animatronics in front of her.

"Well?" She questioned impatiently, desperately wanting to know what was going on.

Bonnie and Freddy turned around, a grim expression on both faces.

"Is he gone?" Bonnie asked. Chica nodded.

"How is it?" Chica whispered, frightened yet anxious to see it.

"Not well," Freddy replied seriously. He moved out of the way so Chica could see. "He is almost here. If we are not careful, Mike will be attacked tonight."

"Then we get to him first!" Chica argued. "We get him out of there!"

Bonnie shook her head. "You know that's not how it works. He will lock everything down as soon as Mike walks into the office. We'll be too late."

Chica stared at that cursed thing in front of her and growled, slamming her fist into the wall. "Dammit!"

Freddy didn't even bother to reprimand her and gazed mournfully at the wall. "There is one thing that can save him."

Bonnie and Chica's heads snapped towards the old bear immediately.

"Freddy, you're joking," Chica said automatically. Freddy shook his head.

"What makes you think he'll help him?" Bonnie cried out. "He hasn't even met Mike yet!"

"We will have to try," Freddy responded. "Or Mike might die."

"There must be someone else who can help!" Chica argued. "We don't know if he'll help!"

Bonnie whimpered, a sound that would never come from her, making Chica and Freddy look on with concern. "There's always the *****Forbidden Ones*****..." she whispered quietly.

Chica inhaled sharply as Freddy's eyes narrowed. "Absolutely not," the animatronic snapped immediately, making Bonnie flinch. "They cannot be trusted."

"We have no other choice, Freddy!" Bonnie yelled back. "What if he won't listen? We have no fallback plan! He's the only one who can open a shut door! The Forbidden Ones can slip in just like that..._thing_!"

Chica sighed. "She's right, Freddy. We have no other choice. He'll be here soon. He's coming. We can't trust an outcast to save Mike."

"Do not speak of him like that," Freddy scolded. The bear sighed. "Fine. You two will head to the basement. I will go speak with him. Hurry back. We only have ten minutes." The two females nodded and raced off towards the back room.

Freddy watched the two animatronics leave before turning to the wall again. "Please...Do not do this. You know better," he whispered sadly to the poster on the wall before sighing and leaving.

The poster of Freddy was on the wall. A poster of Freddy...who was tearing off his own head.

**Thank you guys for reading this chapter! I really hope you people enjoyed!**

*** The Forbidden Ones are not OCs. They are actual characters in the FNAF series.**

**Please note that this is not going off FNAF 4 and I think 3. This story came out before those games were even announced.**

**I hope you guys enjoyed. Please leave a review. Until then, stay safe, take care, God bless, love you guys, and...DARKSOMEONE41 SIGNING OUT! SEE YA!**


	6. VI

Balloons VI

Mike strolled into the dark restaurant, sighing quietly to himself. The animatronics were acting really weird yesterday. Mike was really beginning to wonder if he was being played for a fool.

Mike's pain was non-existent tonight. He had finally eaten a meal before walking to work. Now he was full and pain free. It was quite relaxing if he was being honest.

The young night guard crept down the East Hall and entered the lit, yet still messy, office. He sat himself in the swivel chair and pushed himself to the back wall. He took a quick glance at his phone's clock.

_**11:57 p.m.**_ it read. Mike sighed. Three agonizingly slow minutes before the animatronics booted up and his shift started. Having nothing else to do, Mike thought back to yesterday's shift.

_'Bonnie seemed really freaked out. I've gotten to know her in the past few days and being panicked doesn't seem like her. Freddy himself was kinda shocked to see her so upset. And Chica...she seemed so nonchalant about everything. She knew what was going on, yet she didn't seem not even slightly bothered by it. It seems like the two roles would be reversed. Are they hiding something?'_

Mike checked his phone's clock again. _**11:59 p.m.**_ Mike groaned and picked up the tablet on the desk. He had only used it once during his time here and he felt the need to play with it for a little while.

Scrolling through the cameras, he smiled at the broken kitchen camera. Chica had told him last night that she liked privacy while she worked. He decided to respect that and continued cycling through the cameras. Glancing at the screen, he saw two buttons on either side of the office. The cameras seemed to be facing behind the doors, peaking Mike's curiosity. He clicked on the button that was placed in the West Hall. What he saw shook him to the core.

A poster of a yellow version of Freddy was hanging on the wall. His eye sockets were black and empty, his face dirty and scratched up. The screen began flashing words on the screen, pictures of the animatronics flashing behind them. Mike barely caught a glimpse of the sentence before he heard the doors slam shut.

_"It's me"_ was what the screen had said, and now he was hearing it in his ears. Mike's heart began beating fast in his chest, his eyes quickly turning to the clock in the upper right hand corner.

_**12:01 a.m.**_ was the time. The air began to feel colder around him and _"it's me"_ was still whispering in his ears.

He slowly put down the tablet and his heart jumped to his throat when his eyes laid sight on what was in front of him.

The thing in the poster...it was in the office. The black soulless eyes were staring dead at him. The yellow Freddy was slumped over on the ground, wires sticking out of one of his eyes and dust and grime covering his fur.

_"IT'S ME!"_ was yelled in his ears before suddenly, the yellow bear's eyes began to glow red. The suit began to jerk violently. Mike was frozen. He was going to die. He couldn't move. Why couldn't he move?!

The suit was a second away from getting up when two figures slowly fazed through either door. The two figures were shadow-like figures, one in the shape of a thin Bonnie and the other was a normal sized Freddy. Both creatures had glowing white eyes and teeth. The two figures' colors were a very dark purple, almost reaching a shade of black. A low and dark voice spoke.

**"Enough."** The voice was a distorted version of Freddy's, dark and deep. **"Leave now."**

The yellow bear seemed to speak, but instead of actual words, it repeated the same sentence over and over. _"It's me! I-I-It's m-m-m-m-me! M-Me!"_

The shadow version of Bonnie spoke, voice similar to Freddy's but slightly higher pitched due to gender change. **"It is your time to leave, Golden Freddy. We will have to forcibly remove you if you do not follow our orders."**

Sudden thumping on the West Hall Door made Mike jump in his seat. His poor heart was already racing and the sudden pounding only succeeded in scaring him even more. The pounding continued, and when Mike looked at the power on his monitor, he could see it going down fast.

_87%, 84%, 80%, 74%..._It was going too fast for Mike to catch up.

_"IT'S ME!"_ 'Golden Freddy' roared before a distorted version of a robotic scream filled his ears. The robot launched straight at him, but the shadow bots grabbed the animatronic and nailed him to the floor. The three robots began to faze through the floor. Golden Freddy was almost completely through the tiles when his voice sounded again, this time, slightly tired.

_"It's...me..."_ the thing whispered before its eyes went dark again and his head was pushed through the floor again. The shadow bots slipped through the tiles as well, the doors suddenly opening.

Just as the shadow bots' feet fell through, another animatronic came bursting through the west entryway. Mike's breath hitched when he laid eyes on the robot.

A red pirate fox was in an attack position, glaring at the floor. Its ears were pushed back, eye patch lifted and showing off fierce gold eyes. His hook was poised high and his regular metal hand was holding him up off the ground. His mouth was open in a biting position, showing off sharp, white canines, a red tinge to them.

When it sensed there was no danger, it stood, lowering its hook and giving a softer look. It stared at the terrified Mike before saying in a pirate voice, "I be sorry for me late arrival." It paused. "Ye be terrified. I understand. Rest now, lad, ye be traumatized. Ol' Foxy will not let anything else touch ye."

Mike could only stare back. "Y-You...You're still active?!"

The fox's eyes looked down. "Aye...Mikey."

Mike's eyes widened. "You remember me...?"

The fox nodded before looking back at the night guard with sad eyes. "Lad, I did not wish ta harm ye. Twas an accident. Me apologies." The fox's eyes became concerned. "But, please, lad, rest. Freddy and his friends will be arriving soon. I need ta go. I be seeing ye later." And with that, the pirate fox sprinted off down the West Hall.

Mike sat there, traumatized and struggling to calm himself. His heart was beating wildly as he stared at the perfectly fine floor. He barely heard Freddy rush into the office and pull Mike into a tight embrace. Mike was too deep in his own thoughts to even register the fact that he was being hugged.

"It is okay now, Mike. You are safe. I am sorry," he heard Freddy distinctly say. Mike shakily nodded before his thoughts overwhelmed him. The last thing he saw was Bonnie and Chica's horrified faces before his world went black.

**Again, this was written at 1:00 a.m. til 2:05 a.m. so I apologize if this kinda sucks. I can do better! I swear! Sorry for the length. I'm really tired but I will not sleep until this chapter is done and posted! I hope you guys enjoyed. If you did, please leave a review. I can't thank those who have enough. Until then, stay safe, take care, God bless, love you guys, and...DARKSOMEONE41 SIGNING OUT! SEE YA!**


	7. VII

Balloons VII

When Mike slowly awoke, his vision was blurry, causing his heart to start racing again. It began to clear though, and he forced himself to calm down. He then began to feel for his surroundings as his vision slowly returned.

He carefully sat up, holding a hand to his throbbing head. _'Where-?'_ His own thought was cut off when he recognized the room. _'The dining hall? How did I get here?'_

The animatronics were no where in sight. Pirate Cove's curtains were closed and no sound was being made throughout the restaurant. Mike slid himself off the table and put his hand back down to his side. He was about to walk back to the office when his name was called.

"Mike." The night guard turned around and saw the large animatronic bear standing outside the back room door, a blank expression on his face.

Mike felt rage soar through him at the sight of the robot. He almost let Mike die! With no warning at all, Mike was attacked by some...ghost or whatever, and Freddy didn't even seem to care! Was all that comforting in the office a lie? A joke? Was this a sick, sick prank? Was Foxy in on it?

Foxy...No. That was impossible. Mike had forgiven him, he had forgiven him ages ago, but he didn't think the animatronic would still be active. Foxy had actually come for him. He remembered him when the animatronics didn't. He may have been vague, but Mike knew he was on a time limit. What the limit was for, Mike didn't know.

"Mike, come join us in the room," Freddy said, though it sounded more of an order than a request.

Mike growled. "Why would I, Freddy?"

Freddy sighed. "Mike, we know we made a mistake. We need to talk."

"We don't have to talk about anything," the night guard snapped. He had never been this way before. Michael was always so shy and quiet. Now he was snapping at someone who might just be the first one to figure him out.

"Michael," Freddy started. "Join us, please."

Mike stood still. He didn't have the right to say his first name. He didn't have the right to talk to Mike at all. Mike shook his head, eyes closed, before turning and walking down the West Hall. The young male paused at the door and looked to his right. The poster was still on the wall, but it was different now. It was just a poster of Freddy.

Mike stared at the poster._ 'What? How? That was just a poster of 'Golden Freddy' or whatever his name was on it! Did it change? How does that happen?'_

Mike shook his head. This was all too much. Creepy poster, possessed robot, guardian shadows, active out of order pirate fox, and backstabbing animatronics. Mike wanted to go home and...he didn't even know. His mind was scrambled. Maybe it was just an aftershock. Mike sighed.

The twenty three year old practically threw himself onto the office chair and sighed, burying his head in his hands.

He cursed and looked over his fingers before reaching into his pocket. He pulled out his phone and began scrolling randomly, wanting something to do to pass the time. Too busy wasting his phone battery, Mike didn't hear the footsteps walk down the West Hall.

"Mike..."

Mike's head shot up and his eyes narrowed when he saw his visitor. "Bonnie." He replied sharply.

The purple bunny winced. "Mike, we're sorry."

"Are you?!" Mike snapped. "You couldn't even tell me?!"

"We were trying to find a way to prevent this from happening!" Bonnie cried. "Please understand that we didn't mean this!"

"Is that what you were so worried about last night?" Mike growled. Bonnie stayed silent. "It worried you. You were scared of it. You knew it was dangerous. And you didn't even think to tell me to stay away? What the _hell_ were you thinking, Bonnie?"

Bonnie was silent for a moment. "Did they come?" She asked quietly, changing the topic, much to Mike's distaste.

"Did who come?" Mike hissed.

Bonnie winced. "The Forbidden Ones."

Mike rolled his eyes impatiently. "You're going to have to be more specific than that, Bonnie. But if you mean those shadowy figures, then yes. They came. Unlike you."

Bonnie looked down. "And did _he_ come?"

Mike spared her a glance. His tone softened at the thought of the fox that came for him. "Yeah. He did."

Bonnie looked up immediately at the softness in Mike's voice. "You like him?"

Mike growled. "Of course I do!" He snapped. "He came for me immediately! He didn't wait! Foxy is more of a friend than you'll ever be!"

Bonnie flinched at hearing pirate's name. "He doesn't deserve the title of a friend, Michael."

"He doesn't _what_?!" Mike snarled. "Of course he does! He saved my life. He would've stayed longer if you and the others hadn't all of a sudden wanted to play 'Hero'!"

"He doesn't deserve to active, Mike!" Bonnie snapped, catching Mike by surprise. "That _thing_ bit off the front of a mother's head in front of so many children!" She screamed.

Mike stood stiffly as the clock began to chime. His voice was low and dangerous. As he spoke, Bonnie knew she screwed up. "I know what he did. Don't you ever call him a 'thing'. That woman...she was my mother."

And with that, Mike left the office, not daring to hear what Bonnie had to say next.


	8. VIII

Balloons VIII

Mike walked into his office the next night a little early. He was about ten minutes early, but he wanted to practice what he was going to say to the animatronics if they showed. Did he want to talk to them? Did they want to talk to _him_? He blew up in both Freddy and Bonnie's faces. He understood if they didn't want to see him.

But was he really the one to blame?

They were the ones who almost let him die! By the hands of a ghost, nonetheless.

Now that he thought about it...he almost died. And he would've died alone. He was alone all his life...and he would've died alone too. It was too much to handle. He would've accepted death, it wasn't like he was leaving much behind, but he would have liked at least someone besides his murderer to be there. It was a sad thing, really. To die alone. With no one there to say that it will be okay. To say he would be missed. Mike knew he wouldn't. Mike knew he wouldn't be missed the moment he was born. He never even saw his father smile...His father…

Mike felt something bubble up inside him when his father was brought to his mind, but that was interrupted by a knock at the East Hall. Mike turned to his right and saw Chica standing there, a sorrowful look on her face.

"Hi, Mike," she greeted sadly.

"Hey, Chica," Mike replied quietly, looking down.

An awkward silence filled the distance between them.

"We have no excuse, Mike," Chica admitted. "We don't any reason to share with you why we didn't warn you."

"Why'd you do it, Chica?" Mike asked, voice breaking. "Why did you almost let me die? Why didn't you warn me?"

Chica looked away. "I'm sorry, Mike. I am. I just thought we'd have the situation solved before it happened!"

Mike stared at her. "There's no such thing as solving a problem before it occurs, Chica. You either fail...or you just postpone the inevitable." Mike paused. "Is that what you did? Postpone my death?"

"Mike, no!" Chica exclaimed, horrified at the overwhelming thought. "No, we love you! You're fantastic! We wouldn't just let you die!"

"You almost did last night."

"Mike, come on. Please!" Chica desperately pleaded. "We're really sorry!"

Mike took a deep calming breath. "How's Bonnie?"

Chica sighed. "Her and Freddy are backstage. They're really worried. I came to get you. We all would've come, but we didn't want you to feel outnumbered and pressured."

"Well, thanks, I guess." There was a silence.

"The night before last, Freddy went to talk to Foxy," Chica announced suddenly. Mike looked up at her. "But Foxy had turned himself off. He didn't say a word to Freddy. We didn't think he was listening." Chica took a deep breath. "We were never mad at him from what happened in '87, Freddy and I. Just Bonnie. She blew up in his face at the end of the day, despite Freddy and I's warnings, and he never spoke to us again."

She looked up at the ceiling. "After that, the last time he talked was to Aaron when he asked if Aaron could shut down Pirate Cove forever. Aaron had planned to shut down Pirate Cove for a few years until the hype died down, but not forever. Foxy told Aaron to scrap him, but Aaron refused immediately. He said he would shut Pirate Cove down, but he won't turn off Foxy or scrap him. Eventually, Foxy found a way to turn himself on and off automatically, no matter what time of day.

"So when Freddy went to talk to him, Foxy shut himself off and didn't say a word. We thought he wasn't going to help. But when you told Bonnie that he came, we were suspicious. Freddy went to talk to Foxy again, but he had turned himself off once more."

Mike stayed quiet. "Why won't he forgive himself?"

Chica looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I forgave him. Why won't he forgive himself?"

"Maybe it's because he was the one who attacked for no reason," Chica suggested.

Mike furrowed his eyebrows. "Oh."

"What?"

"It's just that…" Mike's face looked crestfallen and sad. His eyes darkened and he looked down at the floor in misery. "Foxy saved my mother's life."


End file.
